Hands In The Stars

24. Abandoned Residence

"Uhm... Are you really going to eat that?" Ai asked as he watched Cao climb out of the big dumpster with a few small bags in his hands. The mixture of foods looked quite unappetizing.
"We are going to eat it, Jiang, you, me and the others." Cao corrected Ai simply. He made his way from the back alley of the closed store and towards the small street, with Ai tailing right behind him. The night was cold and dark, darker than Ai had ever been used to. They were on the wrong side of the outskirts, a place Ai had previously only ever heard rumours of. This area was more abandoned than any other part of Changchun. Only a few stores were still running, the usage of electricity was low, the lack of street lamps and neon signs felt chilling. It was a great contrast to the constant vibrant blinking from the centre, and even Ai's home block was more lit up with tight street lamps and light strings lining each path and building. Here, Ai was barely able to see much at all. Only the off-white snow around them helped guide the two towards the road. The chilly wind made a few snowflakes dance around them, and every crunching footstep made Ai look around himself in paranoia. 

"You do know that I have money, right? Why not just buy some..?" Ai suggested, peaking over the older mans shoulder. Cao just shook his head with a sigh.
"Of course you do, and you better keep it that way. We need money for the stuff, not for something so simple as fucking food! That's just useless. Here, do some actual good and hold this." He passed the plastic bags over to Ai, who barely managed to catch them in the air. While Ai was eyeing the bags suspiciously, Cao fished up his old, barely working phone from the pocket of his jacket. Soon, he was murmuring to someone on the other side of the line. Ai didn't pay attention, he was way too busy staring back into the dark corners of the many side streets they passed. He turned to see the many distant lights of the big shopping city, and finally relaxed for a while. The city shimmered beautifully through the dark winter landscape. Only a few days ago Ai had found himself in a warm apartment somewhere between those bright lights, but now he was stuck in the old, abandoned district that most people had forgotten even existed. Barely anyone lived in this area, and the few that did either lived extremely far from each other or locked up their entire place at all times out of paranoia. In addition, there were more people living out on the streets here than in the centre, which Ai barely thought possible. Mainly druggies or those who had been labeled not qualified for even the lowest of careers resided in these parts. Cao had told him earlier that most of the homeless people around at the moment weren't those that usually occupied the area. Cao's guess was that they were wanderers on the sun, taking quick stops for temporary shelter from the cold, hiding in some of the many abandoned buildings. It wasn't unusual for people wanted by the police or military to try and hide in these kinds of parts, no matter which district you lived in. Every city had a part for the most broken, and this was Changchuns. He warned Ai to be careful around those who didn't belong to their own little group. 

When Cao suddenly jerked the bags out of Ai's hands, the young teenager got ripped out ofhis thoughts with a startle. Cao threw the foods over his shoulder, grabbed Ai's wrist, and started pulling him forwards as a sign to quicken up their pace. Irritation was visible in Cao's steps, it radiated from his very being.
"Come on now, we don't have all night so hurry those short legs of yours." He grumbled. Ai quickened his steps a bit as they took a turn into one of the smaller streets. This district was a whole maze, they turned left and right more times than Ai could count. He was sure if it hadn't been for Cao he'd be lost in here forever. The buildings were smaller, but so were the roads, cramped and way too many. Eventually Cao stopped in front of a blue house and motioned Ai forward. Ai stared at the dried off paint on the dirty walls and the half broken down roof. He walked a bit closer and peeked into one of the cracked windows to see a small group of friends on the other side. Just as Ai was about to step up to the door it swung open and a taller male greeted them with an excited smile.